Author: stevenattewell

when introducing a castle/fortress in a story, is it a good idea to introduce the layout of the structure in one chapter, and then flesh it out in the following chapters, or should you be vague when you introduce it, and thus keep a sense of mystery as you explore it over the course of a story?

Depends on the story. 

The Gormenghast series starts with an exploration of hte layout of the structure of the castle of Gormenghast, because the isolating and paranoid atmosphere of the castle, the way in which hyper-stylized Victorian ritual and Gothic decay go hand in hand, is key to the book’s themes (nature vs. nurture, stasis vs. destructive change) and its plot: when characters are threatened, it’s by being locked in rooms and having to clamber across cathedral-like rooftops looking for an entrance, the dramatic fire in the library drives characters mad, duels take place on swaying, rotten beams over abandoned ballrooms, etc. 

So starting with the layout of the castle works there, because the setting is so integral to the story.

However, if you want the castle to be mysterious, you probably shouldn’t start with a detailed explanation of every nook and cranny. Be vague, but I would also recommend using the limitations of a character’s POV. Thus, the reader can only see as much of the castle as the character can, and only gradually as the character moves through the castle do they learn about it. 

Do you think the Ironborn words “What is dead may never die, but rises again, harder and stronger“ have something to do with wights? There are parallels. The wights are dead but walking around&killing,they can’t be killed like normal adversaries,only with fire,even as they are hacked to bits they keep fighting. Their god is also a died-but-not-dead being,the DROWNED god. Their holy ritual consists of drowning(killing)&reviving. The wights are ‘revived’ corpses.

If there are fire wights and ice wights, why not water wights?

how much more usefull would being made of valyrian steel make axes, hammers, spears and halberds?

The main thing that makes Valyrian steel better is that it’s lighter, stronger, and sharper than ordinary steel. So it’s going to be better with weapons that take advantage of those properties:

  • Axes: the sharper part will certainly help the axe improve its ability to cut into things, and the stronger part will prevent the axe-head from breaking but that’s pretty rare. The lightness thing doesn’t help – axes want weight behind them so that all that momentum gets channeled by the wedge of the blade to a point. 
  • Hammers: Same thing that goes for axes wrt to lightness goes doubly for hammers. The less a hammer weighs, the less impact it has. However, the sharper part will help with the pick end of the warhammer. Overall, not really a good idea.
  • Spear: Think of a spear as a sword blade on a stick and you begin to see why a Valyrian spearhead would be very handy – lighter spears make it easier to fight longer or to throw the spear, sharper spears make it easier to puncture shields and armor, harder spears won’t break or bend when they hit something. Now, as with the axe, there is an issue that doesn’t crop up with swords: spears and axes are on wooden hafts, which can break or be cut through and then you’re screwed. However, if you have enough metal for a Valyrian steel shaft, then you’ve got something really special. 
  • Halberd: as discussed before, a halberd is basically a Swiss army knife of polearms – it’s an axe, a spear, and a hook. Valyrian steel aids in 2/3 of those, so it’s not a terrible idea. However, it also has the same haft issue but more so because it’s a polearm and has a longer haft. 

cities are obviously very good for the economy, but do they help boost capacity for fighting men in regards to levies?

Well, they don’t change the cost of equipping and feeding and paying soldiers, but cities are populations of non-farmers so they don’t need to go back to the harvest, so there’s that. 

The main thing is: the better the economy, the more professional soldiers you can afford to hire and the less you need levies. 

In AFFC Sam V it says that “Randyll Tarly was known in Old Town, but little loved” and Sam is worried about being recognized by “one of his lord father’s enemies”. Do we know/can we surmise the backstory to this or should we just attribute it to Randyll Tarly just being an unlikeable dickhead?

anonymousautonomousavatar:

goodqueenaly:

racefortheironthrone:

A combination of geopolitical rivalries and personality. The Tarlys are Marcher Lords of the Western Marches, and may well be the most prominent of the Western Marcher Lords, since the Carons of Nightsong owe their allegiance to Storm’s End. At the same time, the lands of House Hightower border the Western Marches, and there are some marcher lords like the Mullendores of Uplands, who are vassals of Oldtown. 

I would imagine there’s been some conflict over spheres of influence between Horn Hill and Oldtown. 

I wonder if marital politics also play a part in Tarly’s apparent enemies. Because Lord Hightower and Lord Tarly are married to a pair of sisters – Rhea and Melessa Florent, respectively – perhaps there is a bitterness about the potential for Tarly closeness with with the mighty Hightowers. Any of the great reacher families might have hoped that one of their daughters would become Lady of the Hightower, and subsequently might disdain Lord Randyll for having such a cozy family relationship to the Hightower (and thus the apparent potential to ask for his wife’s brother-in-law’s help with any troublesome Reach matters).

In the wake of the Florents siding with Stannis, Garlan Tyrell got Brightwater Keep, and Lord Tyrell is upset that his wife’s claim is passed over. House Hightower could have a similar and rival grievance, from an opposing branch of the (fertile, florid, fecund) Florents. Brightwater Keep neatly flanks Oldtown and Horn Hill, making it a substantial gain for either house if they are indeed geostrategic rivals. While both would be upset at the Tyrells, neither could trust the other enough to advocate together for either of their rights.

I don’t know how much Sam would know or be able to deduce about such a potential conflict, as removed from the dynastic politics of the Reach as he was at the Wall, but it’s a neat idea.

I’d like to add a potential geopolitical element to the marriage thing. It’s possible that Tarly was hoping to use his marriage with the Florents to extend his influence “downhill” as it were, only to be checked when the Hightowers married into the Florents and now in the case of a Tarly/Hightower dispute the Florents will be split rather than on Tarly’s side. 

How many arrows would an archer fire in a battle, how does this compare to early infantry wielded firearms?

According to Juliet Barker in her study of the Battle of Agincourt:

“A Welsh or English military archer during the 14th and 15th Century was expected to shoot at least ten ‘aimed shots’ per minute. An experienced military longbowman was expected to shoot twenty aimed shots per minute. A typical military longbow archer would be provided with between 60 and 72 arrows at the time of battle, which would last the archer from three to six minutes, at full rate of fire. Young boys were often employed to run additional arrows to longbow archers while in their positions on the battlefield.[8]”

By contrast, the matchlock arquebus introduced in the late 15th century took 30-60 seconds to reload, allowing for a rate of fire of perhaps one or two shots a minute. The muskets of the 18th and 19th century were faster, but even the best crack infantry regiments of the British army could only manage 5 shots a minute. 

The reason why the firearm replaced the bow is partly because the noise and smoke and stopping power of bullets was quite frightening on the battlefield, but mostly because it was much faster to train someone to use a musket than to use a bow, and because expensive firearms required storage in a central depot to keep them maintained, making them more suited to centralized standing armies. 

In AFFC Sam V it says that “Randyll Tarly was known in Old Town, but little loved” and Sam is worried about being recognized by “one of his lord father’s enemies”. Do we know/can we surmise the backstory to this or should we just attribute it to Randyll Tarly just being an unlikeable dickhead?

A combination of geopolitical rivalries and personality. The Tarlys are Marcher Lords of the Western Marches, and may well be the most prominent of the Western Marcher Lords, since the Carons of Nightsong owe their allegiance to Storm’s End. At the same time, the lands of House Hightower border the Western Marches, and there are some marcher lords like the Mullendores of Uplands, who are vassals of Oldtown. 

I would imagine there’s been some conflict over spheres of influence between Horn Hill and Oldtown.